Analysis of Mechanics During Berthing of Engineering Ships

Impact load and energy transmitted among the berthing ship,the rubber fender system and the anchored ship were investigated.In the analysis,the berthing ship is approximated as a mass,the fender system as a nonlinear spring and the side structure of the anchored ship as a linear spring. Based on assumptions together with the principle of energy conservation,a simplified formulas predicting the maximum berthing force is proposed. Furthermore,finite Element simulation of the berthing process between a split hopper barge and a cutter suction dredger connected via three different types of rubber fenders is carried out through LS-DYNA. Finite element (FE) results demonstrate the validity of the simplified formulas which could be useful in structural safety analysis during berthing and provide advice for the selection of rubber fenders.